(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, MAY 15 - Sirens rang aloud today in the West Bank for 74 seconds, in memory of the 74th anniversary of the 'Nakba', the "catastrophe" for the Palestinians of the founding of the state of Israel on May 15, 1948. A memorial ceremony, reports the official Wafa news agency, took place in Ramallah in the morning at the mausoleum of Yasser Arafat, in the presence of hundreds of people, many of whom displayed black flags and 'symbolic keys' of the houses abandoned in 1948 in villages that later remained in Israeli territory.
The participants then continued towards Manara Square, the main square of the city, where al-Fatah leaders illustrated the historical significance of the event and - with reference to the dramatic events that took place in the West Bank and Jerusalem in recent days - noted that the battle for independence and for freedom it is still running.
While this ceremony was taking place, the dial-Fatah military wing published a communiqué of condolence for the death, in an Israeli hospital, of Daud Zubeidi, one of its commanders seriously injured on Friday in Jenin in a fire fight with Israeli soldiers.
Demonstrations in commemoration of the Nakba also took place in Israeli cities with a strong presence of Arab populations.
A demonstration also took place on the campus of Tel Aviv University.
(ANSAmed).